It covers a distance of 1,661 kilometres (1,032 mi) across, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

The 1,661 km (1,032 mi) long trunk line has been treated in more detail in its sections: The Howrah–Chennai main line traverses the Eastern Coastal Plains crossing such major rivers as the Mahanadi, Godavari and Krishna.

The coastal plains lying between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal are fertile agricultural lands with high density of population.

[3] During the period 1893 to 1896, 1,287 km (800 mi) of the East Coast State Railway, from Vijayawada Junction to Cuttack was built and opened to traffic,[5][6] and construction of the Vijayawada–Madras link in 1899 enabled the through running of trains along the eastern coast of India.

[9][10] In the early 1950s legislation was passed authorizing the central government to take over independent railway systems that were there.

[12] The line was the site of one of India's worst rail disasters, the 2023 Odisha train collision.

Howrah, Kharagpur, Balasore, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Brahmapur, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, Rajahmundry, Eluru, Vijayawada, Nellore, Ongole ,Gudur and Chennai Central on this line are amongst the top hundred booking stations of Indian Railway.